The Fifth Hokage's Decision

"Kill them," a voice called from the end of the corridor. "It's the only mercy."

Everyone turned and saw a young samurai standing in the shadows. He wore battered armor and held a broken sword in his hand. His eyes were hollow and despairing.

"Who are you?" Mifune frowned.

"Okita," the young samurai said. "I served in the border patrol. Three days ago, my captain began to mutate. I put an end to him with my own hands... Then I realized I was in the early stages, too."

He held out his left hand. Black veins could be seen writhing faintly beneath his skin.

"Why can you still keep your sanity?" Boruto asked. Bridge was rapidly analyzing this unusual case.

"Because I severed my 'ki' channels before the mutation began," Okita said calmly. "I'm crippled now, but at least I'm still human."

"Severed your own meridians?" Mifune was shocked. "That's tantamount to suicide!"

"Better than becoming a monster." Okita looked toward the cells, deep sorrow in his eyes. "My captain... He was the strongest samurai, General Mifune. He taught me the true meaning of 'ki' and told me a samurai's soul lay in protecting others. But now, his soul is imprisoned in that body, and even death has become a distant hope."

Boruto walked toward him and stopped three paces away. Bridge was scanning at full capacity, trying to understand what made Okita different.

"You have some kind of antibodies inside you," Boruto said in surprise. "They're not fighting the mutation. They're... coexisting with it. That black energy hasn't consumed you. It's adapting to you."

"What does that mean?" Okita looked up, a glimmer of hope in his eyes.

"It means there might be a third option," Boruto said. "Not evolution, not extinction, but... symbiosis. Like Bridge and me."

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